The Christmas Blessing by Donna VanLiere

I know it's after Christmas but I said I would let you know how the sequel the Christmas Shoes was. This is a great book, even if it is after Christmas.

In the story the little boy from the first book, who bought the shoes for his dying mother, is grown up and going to school to be a doctor. While doing his internship he meets a girl and eventually falls in love. The girl he loves gets very ill and needs a transplant...she gets sicker and sicker but no transplant is available and just when she's about to die, the Christmas miracle happens, a transplant is found! The greatest part is where the transplant comes from but I won't tell you, just in case you wanted to read the book. :) It's a tear jerker just like the first book but it's still good. You know the feeling, when it feels like someone reaches into your chest and squeezes your heart? That's what this book did to me. Hope ya like it!

12/27/08

Ok, back to present...kind of. This cake I did for a past bride for a baby shower...not hers though, dang it. I did tell her one time that she couldn't have a baby unless she came back from Atlanta for her shower so I could do the cake. :) Leslie, make it soon k? This cake was at the Hawthorne House in Parkville. Coarse sugar the chocolate accents and fresh flowers by Drew at Blue Bouquet. And if you need a better pic of this cake, you can check out the blog of the coolest photographers under the sun...the Solars. (Man, did this girl have good taste in vendors or what?!?!?) :) And look, the bride and groom toasted with Coke and Diet Coke...love it, so cute!

Winter Fun!

Sheesh...where did this kid come from?!?! He must get his genes from his dads side.....

And she must get hers from mine :)

Rock and Roll, Daddio!

Molly trying to make a snowman but the snow was too dry...she settled for a "'snow pile" instead. Luke getting ready to sled the hill at the gym...

Dorian...ready to shred some snow.....or something

I can't seeeeee you!

My little princess putting on ornaments...awwwww :)

What's so funny? Stud....

Sometime in December....

I'm so behind on this blog....sigh, I can't even remember the date of these cakes but oh well, I'm still gonna share 'em!
This cake was for a firefighters son that turned 7...obviously And this cake was for a lady turning 60 and having her birthday party at the Gem Theatre. The daughter ordered the cake and she and I both looked for toppers in the KC area and couldn't find a J (of course, we waited to long to order one online...duh) so I made this one! I just cut out the J from fondant and used the new stuff...edible glitter! LOVE IT!!! The cake was hexagon with coarse sugar and satin ribbon with fresh flowers.

Whew...got more catching up to do!

The Christmas Shoes by Donna VanLiere

And what better way to get you in the holiday spirit than a Christmas book, right? Well, maybe go for The Night Before Christmas or something like that if you want to feel all warm and fuzzy inside. This book was a short read and well written but I felt like my heart was breaking while I read it. You've heard the song about the little boy who wants to buy his momma pretty shoes because she's gonna meet Jesus tonight...this is the story the song is about (actually was written about the song but whatever.) The book introduces us to the characters and then at the end, it tells how the mom talks to her son about how she's going to die....it's very sad. All I could think of was how sad I would be if I were that mom and knew that I was going to be leaving my family behind. :( I will be posting the sequel to this book soon, The Christmas Blessing. See ya soon!

Intensity by Dean Koontz

AS you all know, I am a book worm and will read anything but I really like to read scary books (which is kinda stupid because I WON'T watch scary movies!) Anyways, I finished this book the other day and thought I let ya know that it was great! The whole book is basically about this psychology student (who is pretty darn dumb) trying to escape from this homicidal maniac (who is pretty darn smart.) Her escape is long and drawn out, and very detailed. She makes it away from his house in his motor home with his captive, a teen-age girl, and you gotta know they will meet up with the killer for the fight scene....well, seriously the fight lasted one whole page. That's it! I thought after all of the events leading up to the fight it would be this crazy, wild fight but no, she just killed the killer and everyone lived happily ever after. Well, kind of, anyways...it was still a good book, full of suspense (and while reading it I kept thinking what an idiot! The girl was asking to be captured...duh!)

12/6/08

Did this cupcake Christmas tree for my pal Gregg, it didn't turn out as cute as in my head but then again, things rarely do. Then to make matters worse, Gregg picks it up and says, "Oh....I thought it would be flat." Well, that woulda made things easier!

I did this little onesie for a Christening a couple weeks ago but forgot to post a pic...

Another maternity cake...so cute!

This snowflake cake was for a Sweet 16 birthday party. My camera didn't pick up the glitter very well but the amazing Heather Cole says she'll send better pics! Can't wait!
This was for a wedding at St Andrews Golf Course in Overland Park, KS. Buttercream iced with satin ribbon and fresh flowers.

and a fire helmet grooms cake.

And I just HAD to share this! I bought these adorable measuring spoons for my Aunt Dorothy because she is famous for not giving measurements. "OH you know, a pinch of salt, a dash of cinnamon..." It kills me! (Aunt Dorothy, if you watch my blog exit this page now! don't want to ruin your present!)

Corn Cake

This is probably not healthy but I made it for Thanksgiving at the fire station AND the in-laws and everybody loved it (especially Steve!)

1 can whole-kernel corn, drained
1 can creamed corn
2 boxes Jiffy corn muffin mix
sm. sour cream (4 oz.?)
8 oz. cream cheese
butter

Mix all ingredients together except butter, pour into 9x13 baking dish and dot with butter. Bake at 375 until done in the center (check it like you would cornbread.)

The Fred Factor by Mark Sanborn

Fred, my friend from the gym, is seriously the nicest guy you could ever meet. He has a hobby of growing roses and gives them away to anyone and everyone just to brighten their day...never expects anything in return, just does it to be nice. Fred asked me to read this book so I could understand why he does this.

The Fred Factor is about a mailman that goes above and beyond what his job description says he should do. He makes sure that his "customers" are happy and get the very best service that he can provide. That's it...it's all about giving your all in all that you do. If we could all do this, this world we live in would be a nicer place. If you would like to read something motivational...try this. :)

Creating Myself by Mia Tyler

Alright, well it's been a while since I read a REALLY good book but this one...yea, it was a good 'un! This book is about the life of Mia Tyler, legendary rocker Steven Tylers daughter. The book tells how even though she had a famous dad, a beautiful groupie mom and basically all the money she could ever want...life can still suck. After almost committing suicide she has a new view on life and tells us to look for the positives in everything and not dwell on the negative. Good book, you should go pick it up!

Decker's Wedding

Here is the firefighter families that were left at the end of the night...

Sweet little Emma enjoying a cuppy cake!
And another....I think she had like 4 cupcakes :)

"Ok, this how it is...you do what my husband tells you to and then you get a good performance review..."

And here's the boss dancing with his wife...finally.

Aw...Brian and Jess

Steven, is that a drunken stupor look on your face? I was trying to get a pic of Goldie in the background but I couldn't catch her!

Jeanne's gonna kill me!

Me doing the Chicken Dance with Emma.

Emma dancing with her momma.

Emma dancing with her daddy....she's a little dancin' fool!

Poor Decker...he probably feels violated.

This picture is really not all that interesting....oh wait...MRS. SMITH!!!! Shame!

Weiner! Why do you look so petrified?

Butt out Steven

Tim doing a keg stand...he kicked the crap outta Mark!
Weiner did one...
Brian did one...

Mark did one...

And even Jess did one...

Luke's Birthday

Well....I said there wouldn't be any cake pics from last week because I had lost my camera...but my sister-in-law snapped this pic of my sons birthday cake and emailed it over. He wanted a mountain with army climbing up the side fighting and a plane dropping bombs from the top with flames and craters in the mountain side....uhhhh, whatever. He got the mountain, the guys, and the plane...no bombs, flames or craters.....sounds like a fair trade to me?!?!

Here's Molly Lou waiting for a piece of cake...little doll baby. :)

And here's my handsome husband and his hot sister....they've got some good genes on that side of the family!

Hope's Highway by Dorothy Garlock

Hope's Highway was a pretty quick read. The story reminds me a whole lot of The Grapes of Wrath due to the fact that the entire book is set on the road to California. Several families from Missouri who own ice businesses (this is when people still used ice boxes for fridges) decide to head to California and start there businesses fresh there. Unlike today, the trip takes weeks and there is plenty of drama along the way. It is kinda neat to read about what life was like in other times.

Murder on the Menu by Miranda Bliss

This is a really cute book. It reminds me of the Stephanie Plumb books (One for the Money, Two for the Show, etc) which if you haven't read you should definitely do. Anyways, Miranda Bliss has a funny personality that comes through in her writing...she's sarcastic and I love it. This book is about two best friends who work in a restaurant, find another friend dead, and then try to figure out what happened to her when the police won't. Good read, just takes a day or two! Oh yea, no cake pics this week because I lost my camera....duh.